The Path of a Guardian
by Zetsumei-Dragunov
Summary: This IS before Guns and Roses my fanfic Zetsumei has been a guardian once, she doesn't want to be one again, but Maester Kinoc tells her to go seek Yuna.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

As I walked down the streets of Bevelle, I noticed a big crowd surrounding the red carpet leading up to the temple; I guessed that a summoner was here or one had just been made. I had no clue that he would be looking for another guardian. "Excuse me, people of Bevelle," He shouted, "As you all know, I'm Lord Braska and I'm here looking for another guardian, and um-" The crowd erupted into a loud applause and cheers for his two guardians that came up beside him. 'Wow, he wouldn't choose me for his guardian,' I thought. "Everyone return to your normal schedules, and act like we were never here!" one of his guardians said. I didn't really care if they were here or not. He would most likely choose another male guardian.

They stayed for a few days, approached many people, and as they were leaving, I was approached by Braska and his entourage. I (me, of all people!) was asked the same questions as all the others, like "What is your weapon of choice?" and "Do you have any personal ties back here in Bevelle?" Most people that live in Bevelle do have personal ties. "Well, Zetsumei, maybe we can stay over at your place, and we'll leave tomorrow morning, bright and early." Lord Braska said. My face twitched. "Sure, I guess"

Later that day, I finished what I had to do and returned home. The place ws an organized mess, and the only places that were perfect was the bathroom, the kitchen, and my bedroom (part of it was my fault, but I haven't been home for a while…). "Could we get everyone in the main room?" I asked Braska. He nodded and went off to get the other two.

The odd thing was that both of them had brown eyes, seemed like alcoholics, and had dark colored hair. "Miss Zetsumei, I am Jecht and well, I used to play Blitzball." The one on the left said. And the one on the right calmly said, "My name is Auron, Lady Zetsumei." I smiled and then Braska spoke up. "This is our second time to Bevelle, and we still need to get to Mt. Gagazet and from there to Zanarkand, our final destination." "Oh, alright then. I'll just get some rest and uh…" I didn't show, but I was actually afraid to have 3 guys in my house.

The next morning, I got up and took a shower. "Knock, Knock! Zetsumei?" Braska called. "I'm in the bathroom, don't come in!" I responded. "Anything I could get you?" "You could get the clothes that I have on my bed, and hand them to me." Braska grabbed the clothes carefully and nudged open the bathroom door and set them down on the counter. I got out of the shower and get dressed. I was wearing a red gown with gold dragons on it with black leggings underneath it with black-and-red sandals and black gloves (that I didn't put on yet!). I walked out of my room and shut the door behind me after grabbing my 'bottomless' dark blue bag.

"Good morning, Zetsumei!" Jecht and Braska said simultaneously. I smelled food. "Hey sit down by Jecht and I'll bring you something to eat." Braska said. I sat down by Jecht, which was across from Auron. After a quick breakfast, we set out on our tireless journey.

A few days later we had the final Aeon and we were waiting on sin to come by, eventually it did "There it is!" We all shouted.We got ready for the fightand Braska used the final summoning. I was used to long battles, even when I couldn't fight. Auron was paying so much attention to the fight, I couldn't even talk to him. But occasionally a fiend would come by and at lest I'd have a decent battle, and one time I almost got taken out by a Chimera, Auron still didn't notice (and the battle was right in front of him… He only laughed at me….).

"Auron! Get out of here!" Braska yelled. Auron just stayed put, he wasn't going to leave a good friend. The final summoning disappeared and in its place Jecht collapsed. Braska fell to his knees and then onto his face. Auron ran up to them, and I followed. "They're gone!" Auron said "I only have you, now. Don't go dying on me!" I looked confused. 'Why, they were gone! And I'm the only one he's got left? I was never anything more than a friend. 'Auron started running off to where we saw Yunalesca and gained the final Aeon.

"No! Where is the sense in all this? Braska believed in Yevon's teachings and then died for them! Jecht believed in Braska and gave his life for him!" Auron yelled frustrated. "They chose to die," Yunalesca said calmly, "because they had hope." Auron launched forward with his sword drawn to attack Yunalesca, but she, from 5 feet away, knocked him back. He landed flat on his face. I gasped. "Auron! Are you-" Yunalesca laughed, "Fool guardian, he's drifting too…" Then she disappeared. I ran over to Auron, he wasn't dead, just in a death-like trance. I shook him a couple of times. He woke up.

He looked up at me, he had a scar over his eye, it was a terrible and sickening sight to see. He stood up and picked up his sword. "Let's go." He said as he started to walk away.


	2. Maester Kinoc's Gift

**Chapter I**

_** 10 Years Later **_

"Alright! Welcome back to Bevelle, Miss Yakunai." The guy said. I smiled I finally got it done. I changed name. "Yakunai? That name suits you better than your old one." "Kinoc?" "Yeah." I turned around it was Wen Kinoc, we used to be friends, but as he got higher up in the ranks, we weren't allowed to be friends anymore. "Well, you've changed, but why don't I give you something?" Kinoc asked. "What do you mean?" I asked. He held out a box. "Oh, my. Kinoc. I'll think I'll open it up at home." "Oh. Ok. I just wanted to see your reaction." "I guess you could come over for a little while."

Later at my house, I sat down on my couch and opened the box on top was a note…

Y kevd vun oui Vnus yh umt Vneaht. Wen Kinoc

"A gift from an old friend. Kinoc? I thought it was forbidden! That language!" I said. He chuckled and said, "well, it was, I mean, it still is. And how is Auron?" Then, he left. Even though I was shocked, I continued to get all the paper out of the box. Inside was a new dark blue robe, a dark blue hat that hid my face, a pair of dark blue gloves, and black boots. Inside on of the boots was another note.

Ku du Pacyet, ku ehdu dra dasbma, yht fyed vun y cissuhan hysat Oihy.

"Go to Besaid, go into the temple, and wait for a summoner named Yuna. He wants me to go to Besaid? I guess I could go." I whispered as I went to go into my room carrying the box Kinoc had given me, when I stopped dead in my tracks. "He _wants _me to go protect a summoner…Again? Uh-uh, no way! I barely survived the last one, I'm not going through another!"

I was going to sell my place and become a traveler, so I couldn't be found easily, but this time one of the 'elders' told me to go do something, I had to go and do it. There was a knock at my door, so I put the stuff down and answered it. "Hello?" I said as I opened the door. It was O'aka the XXIII (23rd). "I'm here to give you Gil for your stuff and the house." "They sent you?" "Yeah, and how much will you take for the house?" "Doesn't matter." "How about 10,000 G?" "That's fine." "And 30,000 for the other things?" "Make it 50,000 and it's a done deal." "40,000" "45,000 Gil" "Alright, 45,000 Gil. The total is 50,000 Gil." "Alright let me get my bag and I'll be out of here!" I said as he came in and looked around.

We had talked about the house before, and our estimate was 100k because it's in Bevelle, but it got lowered to 60k, because I was a fallen summoner's guardian. I grabbed the 'bottomless' bag and the other set of clothes. I set the hat on my head and started out the door. "Yakunai? With your luck, I may see you again…" O'aka said softly as I walked over the doorstep.

Outside of Luca, on the Mi'hen Highway, there was a Rin's shop; it was late so I went in. "Fuimt oui mega y nuus, Wadcisae?" Rin called. "Neh! E ryjahd caah oui eh ykac!" I responded. "Yht, syo E ycg y xiacdeuh? Fryd yna oui tuehk rana?" "E ryja du ku caa y cissuhan eh Pacyet. Rekr Bneacd'c untanc..." "Oh, I see. Well, here you go." Rin showed me into my room and shut the door on his way out.

I woke up the next morning and got dressed in the dark blue clothes Kinoc gave me. I went outside the room and said my goodbyes to Rin and he told me to come back. I could tell he was hiding something from me, something big and important. I went into Luca's harbor and went to catch a ride to Kilika. While I was aboard the ship, everyone kept dodging me; they didn't even want to ask me where I was from.

When I got off at Kilika, I stayed overnight at a near-by Rin's shop over by the temple. I woke up that morning, refreshed, and boarded a ship to go to Besaid, my final destination for now.


	3. Yuna and Kilika

**Chapter II**

I walked up the steps, my legs almost giving out, to the humongous, stone temple. I was greeted with the familiar Yevonite prayer. I asked one of the priests if there was a summoner in the trials. His answer was yes, but she wasn't a summoner yet, it's been a while though. A blonde haired boy, who reminded me of Jecht, and an orange haired Blitz player came into the temple. "But she might die!" The blonde said. The other responded. "Only a summoner and their guardians can enter the Trials!" He was too late; the blonde had already run up to the trials.

Later, 5 people came out of the Trials; I guessed that the summoner was successful. Everyone left the temple, and I followed. A brown haired girl was calling forth an Aeon, it was Valefor. Everyone cheered for Yuna, the summoner. When Yuna dismissed the Aeon everyone parted. I walked over to Yuna, and introduced my self. "Lady Yuna, I am Yakunai, from Bevelle. Pleased to finally to be in your presence." Then she and her guardians looked over at me. "Did I do something wrong? I didn't think I did." Yuna said, "Hello, Lady Yakunai. These are my Guardians, Kimahri, Lulu, and Wakka. Oh, and this is Tidus." I nodded and smiled.

"Yes, you have a strong bunch of guardians. Is it alright if I tag along? I've been through this before. With Lord Braska, your father." Yuna was shocked that I knew her father. "I'd have to consult my guardians first." "Yes, I understand." I replied as she turned to talk to her guardians. She turned around and asked, "Do you by chance know Kimahri?" "Kimahri? Why, yes, I've seen him before. On Mt. Gagazet." I said. "Well, anyway, welcome, Yakunai, you're one of my guardians." Yuna said smiling.

We all sat around a fire pit and Tidus wasn't allowed to go near Yuna at all, at least, until he was 'healed' from Sin's toxin… Then about midnight everyone got to sleep.

When we all got up in the morning, our first destination was Kilika, back the way I came. We walked up the hill to the Pillar over looking the sea. We had to stop and pray. Wakka and Tidus were having another complication. When Yuna was done, we headed out toward the makeshift dock. We all got on the ship named the S.S. Liki and started off to Kilika. And about halfway there, Sin itself attacked us. A couple of the ship's crewmen fired harpoons at Sin's fin. Then some sinspawn hurried over to the ship. It was a long and tedious battle.

After the battle the ship had lurched to the side and Tidus fell off. Wakka jumped off, and after a few minutes, returned to the ship. Kilika was a mess; Sin had been there just after we had fought it. It was twilight now and everyone was scattered for shelter. One lonely kid was on an unstable section, and Tidus jumped over, and saved the poor kid. "Twilight is my favorite time of the day, just enough light and darkness to support anything. Some people even say it's romantic, but not in this case…" I said as Yuna walked out to start the sending.

Many people had lost family. Just as many were crying. I had seen my fair share of sendings, but I didn't like them. Summoners could walk on water, sadly their guardians, well, couldn't. I stood there solemn and quiet, but Tidus was being annoying. He kept asking Lulu questions about Spira. The same way his father, Jecht, was when he was with Braska. Except Jecht wasn't as whiney… I guess that that's one way you could tell them apart. After Yuna finished the sending many people thanked her.

Yuna came up to me and asked, "How did I do? Was I nearly as good as my father was?" I smiled, (She could only see part of my face…) "Well, for your first sending, you were actually as great as your father was when I saw him do it, and it was like his fourth or fifth time." She smiled back and I stopped smiling after she turned around. It really wasn't my nature to smile a lot, but for Yuna I had to. She was younger than me, but held in higher regard than me, she was a lot like Braska.


	4. Luca and Auron!

**Chapter 3**

On the way to the temple the next morning, we were confronted with 3 more sinspawn; I could barely do anything to the last one with its rock-hard body. But as soon as we got up to the temple, we saw another Blitz team and another summoner's party. It was sad seeing more than one summoner ready to give up their life, but to them, I guess, it was worth it.

Once we got inside the inner chamber we had to wait for a while. Tidus was very restless, time and time again Wakka and I reminded him to be calm and stay still. But he still wouldn't. Eventually, Yuna came out and we finally got to see Ifrit, the fire Aeon. It was a spectacular sight, even though I had seen it before. We made the long trek back to the village and got onto the S.S. Winno toward Luca. Onboard, there was the Besaid Aurochs, commanded by Wakka, and Tidus were practicing. Tidus was practicing one of Jecht's shots (I could tell because I've seen it a few times). Some of the guardians were downstairs getting some rest but a couple others were talking. Tidus was snooping about, like a child at Christmastime.

In the early morning we arrived at Luca's harbor. It was filled with fans and Blitz teams from all over Spira. Wakka and the Aurochs got off the boat first, then Yuna and the rest of us. A man shouted something over an intercom system announcing the Aurochs' arrival. There were barely any cheers, and Yuna started to head over to a different part of the harbor. Maester Seymour, Maester Mika, and a few others were getting off a boat in the harbor we stopped at.

Maester Seymour was leader of the Guado and a maester, a known individual in Spira. Everyone bowed as he came off and he told them to rise. He said something (I wasn't paying attention) and I couldn't tell what he said.

Yuna walked into the Aurochs' locker room down in Luca's stadium. "There you are! Someone said they say Sir Auron in a café!" Tidus was shocked. "Au-Auron?" "Yes! Sir Auron! Let's go find him!" Wakka responded "Hey! Hey, hey, hey! The game starts like real soon! Hurry back, ya?" Tidus left with Yuna and started going off to find Auron when he saw two Al Bhed. " E meto summoner!" One said and the other responded. "Fa sicd nabund." Tidus tried to explain his encounter with an Al Bhed earlier, but they couldn't understand.

Tidus caught up with Yuna and she was having trouble getting through to the outside of the stadium.

Tidus and Kimahri come out of the café and Lulu is outside along with me. "Where in Spira have you been?" Lulu asks them. "Yuna's been kidnapped by the Al Bhed Psyches. In exchange for her safe return, the want the Aurochs to lose." We start running off to Dock number 4, where the Al Bhed ship is. We fought a series of Al Bhed Machina and on the screen we saw Wakka catching the ball and then getting tackled by an Al Bhed.

When we got to the dock, the ship was leaving, and we found away to get onboard. There we encountered another Machina, the Oblitzerator. We finished it off and Yuna came out of the door, and one of the Al Bhed is knocked out. Tidus, Yuna, and Lulu exchange a few words and then we were all back in the Aurochs' locker room. Wakka was lying on a bench, injured from the match. A couple of the players were asking Wakka if he was alright.

Later, after the match, Tidus swam back out into the sphere to an injured Wakka out when they were attacked by Sahagin Chiefs. Wakka and Tidus beat all of them and swam out. Yuna, Lulu, Kimahri, and I were asking each other what is going on. No one knew, and Seymour summoned an Aeon I have never seen before. It started to attack all the sinspawn in the area.

Wakka joined up with us after talking with the Aurochs. Yuna welcomed him back and also started making comments about Maester Seymour's Aeon. Tidus and Auron arrive back with the group. I moved to behind Yuna because I didn't really understand why Auron was still alive. "Sir Auron?" Yuna asks. "Yuna." Auron responds. "Sir?" "I wish to become your guardian. Do you accept?" "You serious?" Wakka asks. "You refuse?" Auron turned to Wakka. Yuna spoke "No-no! We accept right everyone?" "Of course! No problem at all!" Wakka responds. Lulu asks, "But Why?" Auron responds, "I promised Braska." "You promised my father? Thank you Sir Auron, you're welcome to join us." "And… he comes too." Auron pushes Tidus in front.

After that Tidus and Yuna have an awkward moment. They were laughing and brought attention to themselves. We started walking on Mi'ihen Highroad and met up with two Chocobo Riders, Lucil and Elma. Lucil tells us about a Chocobo eating fiend. Tidus responds with, "Let's go get him!" Auron replies, "Why?" "It's the right thing to do." Auron and I laugh, then we exchange short glances. "What'd I say now?" "Jecht used to say that. And every time he said it, it meant trouble for Braska, Zetsumei, and me." We moved on and stopped at the same Al Bhed shop I had stopped at earlier.


	5. Sin, Al Bhed, and Kinoc

**Chapter IV**

In the morning, we attacked the Chocobo Eater Lucil mentioned yesterday. We beat it and Rin offered us a free Chocobo ride. At the entrance to the Mushroom Rock, we got stopped. Then surprisingly, Maester Seymour came and told the guard to let us pass. We walked past the guards, with Yuna, Tidus, and Kimahri in front, Wakka and Lulu in the middle, and Auron and me in the back. "Hey Yakunai, isn't it?" he asked. "Excuse me?" I replied. "Uh, your name is Yakunai, right?" "Yeah, what about it?" "I just wanted to tell you that you remind me of someone I used to know." "Who do I remind you of?" "I-I" "It's ok if you don't want to tell me. Sorry if I shouldn't have asked." "No, no, I just don't really want to recall the memory of her, right now." "Then, it wasn't my place to ask after all." I said just before Seymour appeared again. Seymour was supporting the Machina use against sin, even if it wouldn't hurt it; Machina was against the teachings, so why was he going against them?

Later, before we got to the command center we passed by some Weapon-Machina, Wakka kicked one of them after cursing at it. Tidus said, "He really hates them, huh?" "Chappu…he left the sword Wakka gave him in Besaid. And he fought with an Al Bhed Machina-Weapon instead." Lulu said. Wakka responds, "That's got nothing to with it! I just hate these sacrilegious contraptions!" We continued farther to the command center and saw a Sinspawn (Gui) being given other Sinspawn. "It won't work anyway." Wakka said, very biased. Yuna replies, concerned, "Don't say that! It may be a hopeless campaign, and it might mean defying Yevon…but the Crusaders and the Al Bhed, they're just doing there best to defeat Sin. They want to rid Spira of Sin forever, that's what we want too isn't it?" "Humph! Alright, alright, but I still think Machina are bad news. They're for a reason."

Lucil appears on a Chocobo in front of all of us. "Lady Summoner! There you are! The Command Center is this way. Maester Kinoc is also there." "Maester Kinoc, too?" Yuna replies. We follow Lucil as far as she can go, and we get to the front of the Commander Center. There we see Gatta. Sounding very unhappy, he says, "The Operation will begin shortly. Please check all of your equipment." Wakka replies, "Um, are you alright" "Of course not! I came here to fight sin! But they stick me here!" Auron stepped forward, "If you want to prove yourself…" "Huh?" "You must first complete the tasks you are given." We moved past Gatta and into the Command Center, there I saw Kinoc, looking different from when I saw him a few days earlier. "I'd heard from Seymour, but I didn't know we'd actually meet. Good to see you, Auron! Ten years is it?" Gatta reappears and said, "All troops ready to move at your command, sir." "Good, Dismissed." "Sir." "Tell me, Auron, where have you been these last ten years?" "We don't have time for this now, do we?" "This plan won't work, you know that. We'll just let them dream a little longer." Seymour approaches, "Lord Kinoc." "Oh, yes. Proceed." Auron said, just loud enough for Kinoc to hear, "That Kinoc, a Maester?" "I heard that Auron. A lot has happened the last ten years. What were you doing, and where?" "Fulfilling a promise to a friend, I still am." "Just tell me one thing, have you seen Zanarkand?"

A little later, Maester Kinoc gave the signal to start the operation. Suddenly, the Sinspawn we saw earlier jumped from its cage. The Sinspawn was pretty easy to beat, and afterwards we watched was going on down below. The Chocobo Knights and Crusaders ran into the water fighting small Sinspawn, it looked like. Auron quickly warned us to look out when Sin's force field took out a lot of the area.

"Ugh. My head." I said as I sat up, looking around for the others. I saw Auron talking to Tidus and the others around talking amongst themselves. I stood up, brushed the sand off of me, and walked over to Yuna. "Are you alright?" I asked. "Yes, I am. And how about you? That was a nasty fall." "I'm fine. But, now that you mention it, it was a nasty fall."


End file.
